Thursday, March 12, 2015

Reading is Important for Work, Pleasure, and Just Being Well-Read

I’ve been thinking a lot about reading lately. Mostly, about
how little time I have for it.

I do a lot
of reading in the course of my days and weeks. I read the Bible and some sort
of devotional every morning. Then there is a lot of reading for work—reading
trade publications, newsletters, academic journals and books to stay up on the
field I teach. I also read lots of memos and reports related to administrative
responsibilities. Of course I have to read student papers. I try to keep up on
the news, which these days involves reading this paper as well as many other
sources digitally on my computer or phone.

So why do I
feel like I lack the time to read?

It’s partly
because so much of the reading I do is obligatory or compulsive reading. I feel
like I lack the time to read nonfiction books or novels just for the sheer
pleasure of it, to entertain and educate myself on topics about which I am
otherwise unfamiliar.

It’s also
because so much of the reading we do these days is done in short bursts. We
read headlines, summaries, reviews, social media posts. In fact, one academic
study found that most of those links we see people offer on Facebook and other
social media platforms are to articles they never actually read. They just want
people to think they read it. And most of the people who click “like” do so not
because they actually went to the link and read and approved of the content.
They just liked the headline, or the idea of the article being linked.

So I, and
possibly a lot of you, need more time to not only read, but to read for simple
curiosity, and to read deeply.

I must say
I was happy to read on the top front of this newspaper last week that the
Bookman, our own local bookstore, will continue even though its current owners
have decided to retire. Kudos to the new owners for following their passion,
and in so doing keeping a local bookstore running for the rest of us.

Speaking of
bookstores, there does seem to be a lot of people in bookstores whenever I am.
This strikes me as odd and reassuring, because I get the sense that many people
feel they have less time to read. Perhaps there is a core group of people who
are regular readers of books. Maybe not everyone feels overwhelmed and lacks the time to read.

That notion
was supported by another article in the paper last week the same day the news
about the Bookman broke. Our local libraries are looking to increase digital
offerings, but they still have hundreds of thousands of printed books in
circulation every year. One librarian noted that people with e-readers also
read print books. Like every other emerging technology, digital books supplement but does
not replace printed books.

An
interesting example of technology encouraging book reading is seen on
Goodreads, a social media space on the web or in an app that’s all about
sharing with friends what you’re reading, what you want to read, and what you thought of
what you read. I’ve learned of good books—and been steered away
from some—with this platform. I have categories of books ranging from academic
interest to pure fiction entertainment in this app, and it encourages me.

I was also
encouraged recently by meeting several people at social occasions who impressed
me with how well read they are. These were people I had never met before, but
just struck up a conversation because we were at the same event with time on
our hands. Our discussions went from history to politics to religion to sports
to philosophy. It was delightful. One person was an entrepreneur, another a
maintenance man. Their occupation and academic pedigree did not matter. They
were simply deep readers, and therefore great conversationalists.

As I write
this, it is college spring break. My wife and I are not going anywhere,
choosing instead to stay home and catch up on some projects and just relax
here. I also caught up on reading. I picked out some classic literature, an
award-winning novel, and some nonfiction works. All of them hard cover books I had
bought in recent years and left on a shelf for later. Well, with a week off
from normal obligations, I dove right in. Now I hope I can keep reading even as
work and life pressures continue.